07 4x4 rear differential?

hi all!

i have a 2007 manual trans 4x4 (152k miles) that has needed some larger repairs recently. i took it to my mechanic and he said the rear bearings are going out and need replacing, but he doesn't have the press for it. i took it to another mechanic who said the whole rear differential needs replacing/repair (as far as i can tell he just jacked it up and listened to it, didn't open anything up). my dad's mechanic, who has seen my truck before, said it's unlikely the whole diff could have gone out especially cause the truck doesn't have that many miles on it, and i haven't been doing any heavy towing or anything...

my question is - how do i know what the problem actually is - just bearings or whole rear diff? what is the most economical way to go about fixing it? if i find a rear end assembly (axle + diff) from a salvage yard would that solve the bearing issue at all?

ok thank you all so much! i am not an expert mechanic clearly but love my truck and want to keep it rolling. any help is much appreciated!

 

You can try taking it to a shop that specializes in differentials.

Most likely no one is going to want to rebuild differential and will recommend replacing the entire 3rd member.

The axle bearings are serviceable but require some special tools.

If it came down to the differential itself being bad I would replace it and still replace the axle bearings.

Getting a used axle assembly is a gamble and might still need work.

 

Do it yourself, its ez. Over the years I've changed questionable Ford 9" and Toyota (very simular) axle bearings on my personal vehicles. The results were a ambient noise reduction I didn't expect.

Read up on removing them, its straight forward ez. You can pull the 3rd member at that point if you want to have it inspected. Axles bearings @ that mileage are relatively cheap and you can take them to a shop or parts house with a press to have them pressed on for a few $..

 

The rear axle bearings aren't a typical DIY job. Definitely NOT "ez" for 99%.

Yes, I did mine, but I have a 20T press, OA torch, massive air compressor, air cutoff tools.... Plus, you need to buy the adapter tubing standoff tool to press them off; that's $100+ alone.

If someone is asking this, it's probably not within their reach.

 

I have a hard time believing that really needs to be done with so few miles. I'd get another opinion.

 

Maybe I wasnt clear enough. Pulling the axles from the housing ones self is straightforward. At that point even dropping the 3rd member is pretty basic with basic tools. This can save alot of time/expense on the total cost. Axle bearing install/3rd member inspect & possible repair can be done by a shop at that point.

 

Sounds like a hassle. Find a shop that might do it wrong and not have the tool.

I wonder if it’s easy to DIY it all. If buying the biggest HFT press. And $200 special tool.
I wouldn’t say return the press after. But maybe sell it used once $20 off if you don’t need it after. There’s a market for it.

I wonder if the 12 ton can do it. I’d imagine yes. I see they have a 12 ton for $120 and 20 ton $250.

 

You could do the job at home with a harbor freight press. The issue is, it’s time consuming. And even more so for a guy that’s never done it and relying on YouTube.

You need to make sure you have all the correct parts in place BEFORE you press the new bearing on. You CAN NOT reuse the bearing if you have to pull it back off.

You have 3 options.

Do it yourself and save a lot of money. (If you do it right)

Buy Dorman axle assemblies (hope they are good)

Or pay someone else.

I’m going with Dorman assemblies and then having my OEM axles rebuilt for when the Dorman fail. That way my truck isn’t down for a few days looking for a press and someone to rebuild them.